


A Strange Kind of Magic: Days of Summer

by Theroguetennant



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, LOONA (Korea Band)
Genre: F/F, Fluff and Angst, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-31
Updated: 2018-03-31
Packaged: 2019-04-16 06:43:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 12,634
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14159061
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Theroguetennant/pseuds/Theroguetennant
Summary: School's out for the summer, and change is coming for each of our girls. Eleven Loona one-shots, focused on each Loona girl and inspired by their solo songs. All of these take place in the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. Fluff. Angst. Everything in-between.





	1. Chapter 1

This is a series of one-shots, each focused on one of the Loona girls as they try to survive their summers. Each one-shot is inspired by their solo songs, and they share the same titles. These stories all take place in the universe established in my fanfiction  _A Strange Kind of Magic,_ so please read that first. These one-shots do contain spoilers, if you care about that sort of thing.

1.VIV:D - Heejin tries to make things right in her own life.

2\. AROUND YOU - Hyunjin has an important confession to make, if she can ever get the words out.

3\. LET ME IN- Haseul reflects.

4\. KISS LATER- Yeojin establishes boundaries.

5\. EVERYDAY I LOVE YOU- Vivi connects with someone.

6\. ECLIPSE- Kim Lip spends time with Jinsoul.

7\. SINGING IN THE RAIN- Jinsoul is sick with love.

8\. LOVE CHERRY MOTION- Choerry shows off.

9\. NEW- Sooyoung changes.

10\. HEART ATTACK- Jiwoo wrestles with an unhealthy obsession.

11\. ONE AND ONLY- Chaewon comes to terms.

So, without further ado, click on the next chapter link and read away!

 


	2. VIV:D

_**DAY FIVE** _

 

Heejin awoke to a sunless sky. But then, every day she spent in her stepmother’s house felt that way to her.

 

She sat up in bed, wincing as she did. The bruise on her back from the day previous still hadn’t healed. That woman let her daughters have free reign when it came to her. The spoiled brats had shoved her down the stairs while she was carrying a basket filled with dirty laundry. The tumble had broken her spine, and she surely would have been paralyzed had it not been for that woman’s talent in healing magic. It had happened before.

 

But today was the day she broke free.

 

Hyunjin and the rest of Loona had come up with a plan for her to escape. It was risky, but it was the only chance she had. There was no way that woman would ever come to justice while Heejin was still living with her.

 

Heejin packed her bags and shrunk them until they fit into the pocket of the dirty little apron they made her wear while working around the house. This was it. She took one last look around at the tiny room she had lived in for the past three years, and then she left.

 

They made her make them breakfast. She did so gladly, with a smile on her face. That woman gave her a suspicious look, but did not otherwise protest. Heejin’s smile grew wider.

 

It took a few minutes, but the laxatives Yeojin had supplied her with worked like a charm. Her captors ran off to the bathrooms in the house to relieve themselves. That woman yelled something at her, but she ignored it. She was leaving now.

 

Heejin cracked open the window in the dining room and slipped out. Once her feet were on the grass, she focused on the now familiar tingling on the back of her neck. She focused on it and focused on it until it became her entire world. When she opened her eyes, she was once again a rabbit. It hadn’t been her first choice, but Hyunjin had made her feel better about it, the way she always did.

 

She hopped away on furry little limbs, finally free for the first time in forever. She went on like that for about an hour, until she was sure that woman couldn’t find her, and then she transformed back.

 

She caught a bus in the nearby town and rode it all the way to St. Mungo’s, which was not her destination, but it was somewhere she had to be anyway. Hyunjin would be mad, but she’d forgive Heejin. She was family in a way that woman and her daughters had never been.

 

A quick step through the front window of a muggle department store led her into the bustling lobby of St. Mungo’s. There were people, wounded and cursed, waiting to be seen. Lots of screaming. Heejin blocked it out and walked up to the receptionist. When she finished telling the  receptionist who she was there for, she got a look of pity and directions to the elevator in return.

 

She got off on the fourth floor. This was a space for permanent magical maladies. What had happened to her father because of that woman certainly qualified. The receptionist’s directions took her to a room down the hallway to her left. She knocked and was let in by a ruddy looking nurse. “Oh. You’re here. He doesn’t get visitors, you know? You should really come down here more often.”

 

“Yeah.”

 

With that brief exchange, the nurse left so that Heejin was finally alone with her father.

 

“Hi, Dad.”

 

The man stared out the window with dead eyes. He didn’t remember anything. He couldn’t remember anything. That woman had made sure of it. The last time Heejin had seen him, he had been frothing at the mouth, totally and completely incoherent. Now he was silent, dead inside.

 

“It’s me.  It’s Heejin. Remember me?”

 

The last two words were more pleading than questioning. Her dad was the only person left in the world who loved her. The only one who could tuck her in at night and read her stories. The only other person who remembered her mother.

 

Tears stung in her eyes as she knelt next to the man in his little rocking chair. She put her hand on his, and he stirred. She gasped as he turned and looked her directly in the eye.

 

“Heejin?”

 

Heejin gasped and took his hand in both of hers.

 

“Daddy...you remember me?”

 

The man nodded, his neck stiff. It had clearly been many years since he had talked to anyone.

 

“Heejin, my little girl. I could never forget you.”

 

“Oh.” Heejin couldn’t help it. She burst into tears and wrapped her arms around her father’s neck. The man pulled her into a hug.

“It was so hard...so hard without you, daddy,”she muttered into his shoulder. The man just massaged her back gently. He seemed alert, but Heejin knew that was only temporary. “That woman---it was s-so horrible!” She physically trembled, and only her father’s warm hands kept her from collapsing onto the floor. It was finally starting to sink in. She was free now. She’d never have to see that woman again, except in court.

 

Heejin’s dad pulled back, both hands on either side of her face. His dark eyes had a flicker of the liveliness and vivid intelligence he had once displayed. He smiled at her, a warm, guileless smile--the kind that only appears on the face of one that loves you unconditionally. “I love you, Heejin.”

 

“I love you too, Daddy.”

 

He didn’t last much longer after that. He receded back into the fog of dementia and left Heejin all alone once more. Heejin made sure to smile as he faded. A good memory to surface later.

 

She left the building and emerged onto a bright, colorful city street. She should have been sad, but her heart was light and a genuine smile had made its way onto her face. She was free now, and she would see him again.

 

They’d make more memories. And she would remember for him.

 

 


	3. Around You

_**DAY TWELVE** _

 

Hyunjin wondered what her life would be like if she could just tell the truth. It would probably be much easier, if she could bring herself to say what she wanted to say.

 

Heejin darted past her, a little more talkative now that she’d become more comfortable with Hyunjin’s tiny coastal home. Hyunjin might have been a pureblood, but her parents lived modestly, without the riches Heejin had grown up with. Hyunjin smiled as Heejin brushed the knots out of her hair. The two of them had always made an odd couple. That’s what all the grown-ups said, anyway.

 

“So, this festival thing...you want me to go with you?”

 

More than anything in the world, she wanted to reply. But her stomach was fluttering and her hands were sweaty, her tongue confused. So instead, she just said, “Yes. It’s nice,” like a goddamn robot.

 

She’s never going to notice you that way if you keep it up.

 

Heejin smiled, that same bright ray of sunshine that Hyunjin knew and loved dearly.

 

“I’ll be there!”

 

You have to let her know.

 

Hyunjin shook her head. She wanted to tell her. She wanted to let her know. But she couldn’t just tell her best friend that she loved her out of nowhere.

 

Their conversations had degenerated into Heejin talking and Hyunjin responding in monosyllables. She was too afraid to let her know how she felt, how she really felt.

 

It was hard to tell exactly when it had started. When her feelings for her friend had ceased being platonic and crossed over into the romantic. It might have been over the winter break. Seeing her friend in such genuine distress had made her realize something deep inside had changed.

 

It was scary, carrying something like that inside of you, like a nuclear bomb. If Hyunjin chose the wrong moment, if she said the wrong thing, that would be it for the two of them. Heejin would never talk to her again.

 

Hyunjin did her best to put it out of her mind. They had a festival to get ready for, after all. She opened the only closet in the room the two of them were currently sharing. Her house only had two bedrooms and Hyunjin refused to let Heejin sleep on the couch. So they had worked out this arrangement. It was fine….

 

Hyunjin pulled a banana yellow dress out of the closet and held it up to he”r chest.

“What do you think?”

 

What do you think of me?

 

Heejin smiled. “I think that that shade of yellow wouldn’t work for anyone but you.”

 

Hyunjin blushed, her body suddenly flushed with heat. Why was she like this? It hadn’t been this way before. She nodded. “Thank you. Um...I’m gonna go change in the bathroom.” Heejin gave her a strange look as she walked into the restroom to change.

 

Gosh, you;ve blown it!

 

The two of them left the house forty-five minutes later. Heejin insisted on holding her hand, despite her protests.

 

“What’s up with you? You’re acting weird!”

 

Hyunjin shook her head. “It’s nothing.”

 

What do you think of me? It’s a simple question, even a dummy like you should be able to spit it out.

 

Hyunjin remained silent, all the way to the town square. Banners in all colors of the rainbow were hung up on lampposts. They swayed gently in the soft summer wind. Stalls of all descriptions were set up around the square, selling various kinds of garments, foods and assorted knick-knacks. The only thing Hyunjin was interested in was the food.

 

She dragged Heejin over to the nearest stall, where she ordered a funnel cake with strawberries on top. It was her favorite thing at the town’s summer festival, and she was eager to share it with Heejin.

 

“Woah, that looks nice! Mmm, it smells even better!”

 

Hyunjin smiled and dug into the soft, airy pastry with her fork. Heejin followed suit, and the fried delicacy was gone in minutes.

 

Heejin flashed her a satisfied grin. “You’re gonna make me fat, if you keep feeding me like you have been!”

 

“You deserve proper meals after...well, you know.” Hyunjin stared grimly at the empty plate. “You deserve a lot more than that, Heejin. You deserve everything.”

Heejin raised her eyebrows. “It’s been a long time since anyone said that to me.” She gazed at the checkerboard tablecloth. “Thank you.”

 

Hyunjin put her hand over Heejin’s. “Always.”

 

Heejin suddenly looked up, right into Hyunjin’s eyes. Hyunjin’s heart beat rapidly in her chest. She was looking at her--really looking into her. What did she see, Hyunin wondered.

 

“What do you think of me?”

 

Hyunjin gasped and clapped her hand over her mouth. She hadn’t meant to just blurt it out like that...but now it was too late. The words were out there.

 

Heejin tilted her head. “What do you mean? You’re my best friend. You’re a good person and you make me happy. What else do you want to know?”

 

Hyunjin froze. You make me happy. Did that mean….no, probably not. Hyunjin was just fooling herself, again. But maybe…

 

No, I was just curious. Because…” Just say it. “I just wanted to know if you maybe felt a certain way about me.”

 

Heejin raised a quizzical eyebrow. “A certain way? What are you talking about?”

 

Hyunjin buried her face in her hands. This was so dumb. She wished she could turn back time and stop herself from ever speaking.

 

“It’s just…”

 

Hyunjin bit her lip.

 

“I think I’m in love with you, and I have been for a really long time.”

 

Hyunjin’s heart pumped relentlessly in her chest. She felt like she was going to explode. It was finally out there. All that was left was for Heejin to make a decision.

 

Heejin’s face was completely blank. It was if Hyunjin’s declaration had sent her running to the back of her mind. Hyunjin frowned.

 

Heejin leaned forward and Hyunjin cringed, sure the other girl was going to slap her. Instead, she gently stroked the side of her face. Hyunjin gasped. “What are you doing?”

 

“Admiring you. That’s what girlfriends do, right?”

Hyunjin laughed, a shocked, nervous giggle. There was no way this was real. But she didn’t care. She loved it. And she loved Heejin.

 

Nothing could change that.


	4. Let Me In

_**DAY FIFTEEN** _

 

Haseul stepped out of the shower and came face to face with herself in the mirror.

 

_You know you’re a lie, right? A fiction conjured up by a diseased mind._

 

She looked herself over in the mirror. Her long hair, her soft skin. It hadn’t always been this way. She wished it had. It would have made things easier.

 

Her shadow, the boy that hung omnipresent in her mind, looked over her shoulder. He was her as she had been. But not quite.

 

She cast her mind back to the beginning, to the moment she had realized what she was--who she was.

 

It had been a simple, uneventful day. Not the kind of day one would expect for something so momentous. She had  looked in a mirror, much like this one. She had seen herself and felt uncomfortable with who she was, and with who she appeared to be. She didn’t fit in this way. She didn’t belong in this body.

 

She asked her mother about it the day afterwards. She had seemed surprised, but she wasn’t fazed. Her mother made her a promise--that if Haseul really wanted, she could be a girl, in body as well as in mind, but she’d have to think about it first. Her mother gave her two weeks to seriously consider it.  Haseul thought of little else.

 

And so, she underwent a series of tests, to see if she was mentally and physically fit to have the spell cast on her. It took months, and it wasn’t always easy to look at yourself in the mirror and see someone completely different from who you were. In the middle of the process, it seemed she could see no end.

 

But it happened, eventually. And Haseul wished she could say it was magical and wonderful and everything she had wanted in life, but all she felt afterwards was normal. And that was a blessing in and of itself. To feel at home in her own body.

 

Of course, there were side effects to every piece of magic. This was hers. To be haunted by a person who had never existed-- that boy.

 

She could see him in the mirror as vividly as she could see herself. That dorky blonde bob cut she had thought was so cool now made her cringe.

 

_The world wasn’t made for you. You think your friends would still like you if they knew what you were? They’d find you disgusting._

 

“I am who I am. If that does happen, then I guess they weren’t my friends at all.”

 

_But you have faith. How charming._

 

The boy stepped closer, his breath hot on her neck.

 

_They’re going to have to find out sometime. You came close, last winter. Didn’t that scare you?_

 

It had, far more than she was willing to admit to her shadow.

 

_You should go back, back to being me. At least then you would be an actual person._

 

“I was never you. Get out of my head.”

 

_You’re so stubborn. No wonder Jungeun left you. How could anyone love someone so...so boring?_

 

Haseul closed her eyes and took several deep breaths. _It’s only a dream, it’s only a dream._ She had to keep reminding herself that this apparition wasn’t real. It was only an extension of her own self doubts. That’s what they’d told her. She just had to keep on with until he faded away, disappeared like a summer wind.

 

_Should I remind you of what happened when your brothers found out?_

 

Her brothers were immature and unwelcoming at the best of times, but they’d reacted fairly well to finding out they had a big sister. Better than Haseul had expected. The youngest was excited, but the oldest had a bit of a fit. He and Haseul had never really gotten along well. The day after she became herself, she’d come home to find her closet ransacked and her clothes burned. Her mother had chastised her brother, but the two of them had never really made up. Their relationship was never the same, and it hurt. It hurt like getting a limb torn off.

 

_See? You’ve got nothing to gain from staying this way. Go, tell your mother that you regret doing this and that you want to go back._

 

Haseul grit her teeth and slammed her hand against the glass of the mirror. The boy wore that same, self-satisfied smirk.

 

_Like you said, I’m not real. No point in attacking me._

 

No, you couldn’t kill an idea. But you could forget one. You could put your past behind you, untouched.  You could lock it away forever and go on with the rest of your life.

Haseul turned away from the mirror. The boy screamed in agony.

 

WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!

 

Haseul didn’t respond. This fragment wasn’t worth her time, and neither was anyone who shared its sentiments.

 

The boy slammed his fist against the glass of the mirror. She could sense that her shadow wanted to follow, but he wasn’t real. He only had the power she gave him. And she wasn’t going to give him a single ounce more of herself.

 

_You can’t leave me behind! I am you-- I deserve consideration!_

 

Haseul hummed quietly to herself as she got dressed. It was a tune her mother had sung to her as a child, when there were no brothers to share her affection, when it was just the two of them, all alone in an empty house. She focused on that warmth and let the cold voice of her shadow fade away unnoticed.

 

_You’ll always be alone!_

 

_You can still make things right!_

 

LISTEN TO ME!

 

Let me in….

 

please--

 

Haseul shrugged the last vestiges of her old self away and stepped into a new world, free of his pain and hatred. Yeojin was waiting for her downstairs. She couldn't let her down.

 

On her way out of the room, she passed by a mirror. She took a brief glance at her reflection and smiled. There was no boy there. The shadow was gone, and a new light had taken its place. What else could she do but smile, to see herself, well and truly whole for the first time in her life?

 

Haseul closed her eyes and gave herself a hug.

 


	5. Kiss Later!

_**DAY FIFTEEN** _

 

Yeojin found herself having a pretty good time at the party.

 

Haseul had invited her out for the weekend, so she could see how the wizarding world operated when there wasn’t a total bully in charge of things. Yeojin had been unsure at first, but the truth was that she trusted Haseul implicitly.

 

A light, jazzy tune filled the large living room that took up most of the ground floor of Haseul’s house. There were at least two dozen people from all over Haseul’s neighborhood all hanging out and enjoying the free food. Haseul’s mom, a dark haired woman who didn’t look a day over thirty-five, was chatting up the guests. Yeojin sat in a corner and drank butterbeer, waiting for an opportunity to socialize.

 

The opportunity presented itself in the form of a boy around her age. He plopped down in the chair next to her and entwined his fingers behind his head in a highly exaggerated motion. Yeojin raised an eyebrow. “Hi?”

 

“Hello there! You look lonely in this corner. Mind if I join you?”

 

Yeojin looked around. Surely this was a prank?

 

“Um, actually--”

 

The boy cut her off and continued talking. “Great! My name’s Martin, so cool to see someone my own age around here!”  Yeojin winced as the boy’s voice elevated in pitch until it cracked midway through the last word. He seemed to lack any sense of self-awareness.

 

“Yeah, nice to meet you, Martin. I’m Yeojin.” Yeojin did her best to sound polite, despite the boy’s rudeness. That’s what her parents had taught her, after all. Yeojin looked around for any sign of Haseul, but the older girl seemed to have disappeared. “I’m waiting for my friend right now.” Martin nodded eagerly, his dark green eyes sparkling. “Oh, that’s cool. I can be your friend in the meantime!”

 

Yeojin pushed her eyebrows together. Why was this guy bothering her like this? Couldn’t he see she wanted nothing to do with him?

 

“Well, okay.” She relented and gave him the opportunity to speak. He took it without pause. “Great, so what do you like to do?”

 

Yeojin groaned internally. What kind of a question was that? It was so vague that she could answer almost anything and still be participating. Did he want a specific answer?

 

“I like dancing, I guess.” It was true, though she had to admit she wasn’t very good at it yet. She’d picked it up during her stay at Hogwarts and had been steadily practicing it ever since. Her dad clapped the first time she had danced for him and her mom.

 

Martin’s lips formed a small ‘o’ of surprise. He leapt to his feet and held his hand out. “Oh, well then we have to dance! It’s a party!”

 

Yeojin shook her head. She wasn’t confident enough to show off in front of so many other people. “You can dance. I’ll stay right here.”

 

He frowned, and his posture went from inviting to menacing in one swift move of the shoulders. “Hey, I thought we were friends? Don’t you want to make me happy?” His voice was sharp and accusing. Yeojin felt a burst of indignation explode in her chest, but she buried it and stood up. If he wanted to dance, so what? It’s not like it would kill her.

 

She got to her feet and was almost immediately swept up into his arms. She tried to protest, but all that escaped her lips was a truncated squeak. The boy smiled mischievously and spun both of them onto the dance floor. The unseen speakers were blaring something with a rapid beat and a dizzying guitar riff. The boy spun her away from him and into the center of the floor, where she whirled like a top. While she was trying to regain her bearings, the boy closed in on her and pulled her into his arms. I don’t like this.

 

“Hey, can we stop? I’m not feeling very well. Haseul is looking for me--”

 

“Well, I’m feeling great. Let’s keep going!”

 

He forcefully took ahold of Yeojin’s wrists and began tilting her up and down. Yeojin felt like she was about to vomit. She managed to hold it down long enough for the song to finish. Martin looked disappointed. She only felt relieved. Yeojin made her way out the back of the house. She had to get some fresh air. Martin followed her. Yeojin groaned in frustation. Couldn’t this guy take a hint?

 

“Wait a second! You said Haseul, right? Isn’t that the daughter of the lady that owns this place? Oh my gosh, she’s so pretty! Is she your sister? You look just like her. Just as pretty.” Yeojin blushed and turned her head away. She was pretty sure this guy was either a total jerk or just too dumb to realize he was making her uncomfortable.

 

He made her even more uncomfortable when he leaned in, placing both hands on the wall to either side of her head. She was trapped against the brick wall. He was looking at her strangely. She didn’t like this. She didn’t like any of it. “Um….”

 

He leaned in close, so close that their faces were mere centimeters apart. “I want to kiss you.”

Yeojin shook her head furiously. She really didn’t want anything to do with him. Also, kissing was gross and unsanitary. “No. Let me get out of here, please.”

 

As always, Martin refused to listen. He leaned forward until their lips were touching. Yeojin squeezed her eyes shut and squirmed as he forced her into a kiss. His lips were gross, and his breath smelled of garlic. Yeojin tried pushing him off, but her tiny arms were too weak  to muster up enough force.

 

So, she did the only thing that she could. She stomped on his foot. The boy yelled and hollered as he pulled away from Yeojin. He screamed at her, “You little mudblood bit--” He stopped suddenly. But there was something wrong with his voice. It was far too soft and high-pitched.

 

Yeojin opened her eyes and gasped when she realized what she was looking at. Martin was a girl! His hair was long and curly and ultra-feminine, hanging over a bright pink dress. He looked completely different. Martin looked down at himself in horror. “What did you just do to me?!” he squeaked.

 

“She didn’t do it to you. I did.” Haseul stepped from around the corner, wand in hand. Yeojin was sure that if the tip of the wand had been smoking, Haseul would have blown it away before reholstering it. Yeojin sighed in relief, her shoulders sagging.

 

Martin gasped. He looked absolutely terrified. Yeojin felt a little bad for the boy. “Haseul? But I was just--”

 

“You were just cornering my friend and forcing her into a kiss she didn’t want. You should always ask before you do things like that. And no means no, got it?”

 

Martin nodded, eyes wide and brimmed with tears. “Yes, I understand! Can you turn me back now? This is really uncomfortable.”

 

Haseul crossed her arms over her chest. “Well, then you know how Yeojin felt. Run along now.”

 

“B-but…” Tears dripped down his face. Haseul stepped forward menacingly, wand in hand. The boy screamed and ran away wailing. Haseul waited until he was out of sight before she burst into laughter.

 

Yeojin raised an eyebrow.

 

“What? Didn’t you see his face? He was so freaked out!”

 

Yeojin raised both palms to the air.

 

“Aren’t you going to change him back?”

Haseul quirked an eyebrow in her direction. “What he did was wrong. He deserves a little bit of a scare. And no, I’m not evil. The spell will wear off in about two days. Actually, it might be a week. It’s been so long since I used it last, I can’t remember.”

 

Yeojin nodded. She was trying her best to keep the smile off of her face, and she was failing. She had to admit, it was pretty funny watching the tables turn on that jerk. Finally, she couldn’t hold it back any longer, and a full-on giggle broke free from her lips.

 

“Oh god, his hair!”

 

Haseul wrapped an arm around Yeojin and the two of them laughed all the way into the house.


	6. Everyday I Love You

_**DAY TWENTY-ONE** _

 

Is this really my life?

 

This was the question Vivi pondered as she went through the aisles of Madam Booth’s Properly Prepared Presentables, a clothes store lodged in a far back corner of Diagon Alley. It was part of her job, counting the items on the shelves and making sure they were all in their proper places. It was dull and demeaning work, but it paid a decent amount of money. Just a few hours earlier, it had struck Vivi that this wasn’t just a summer job she was doing to satisfy her mother anymore. This was her life. There was no more school ahead anymore, just adulthood.

 

The thought terrified her.

 

She didn’t have any special skills, she didn’t have anything that anyone would find useful. All she was was employed at a second-rate clothes store. Seriously, no one Vivi knew would be caught dead in here. But here she was, taking inventory of a dozen different hats and robes. Muggle fashion was honestly better, but she knew that was an unpopular opinion in the circles her father ran in.

 

These were the thoughts Vivi was thinking as the bell hanging over the door rang insistently. Customers!

 

Vivi took a peek through the gap between the shelves. Her heart quivered as she saw who it was. It was him! The guy! The one who came in every so often to check out clothes and would always leave empty handed.

  
No, she wasn’t stalking him! Where did would anyone have gotten that idea?

 

Vivi tried to sneak past her crush’s line of sight and get behind the desk before he noticed her, but of course, he chose exactly that moment to look in the direction of the collectible plushies shelf she had been hiding behind.

  
“Oh, hey, it’s you!”

 

Vivi smiled sheepishly and stood up and out of her crouch. She brushed the dust off the overalls she had decided to wear for whatever reason and beamed appraisingly at the new arrival. He waved at her, a small smile dancing its way across his lips.

 

“You’re in muggle clothes.”

 

VIvi looked from side to side like a trapped deer.

 

“In a shop for wizarding fashion.” He nodded, although it looked more like his head was bobbing its way up and down his shoulders. “I like it. It’s...unconventional.”

 

He extended an arm out to Vivi. Vivi nearly fell over on the spot. She couldn’t believe he was talking to her. She couldn’t believe she was acting like such an idiot! She wished her English was better and she wasn’t so repressed so she could actually make something out of this conversation!

 

She nodded politely and shook his hand. “Yes, I like it.” She had to force the words out through her thick accent and shaky voice. You’re embarrassing yourself!

 

“You know, I come in here a lot, and I always see you, but I’ve never really introduced myself before. I thought you might think I was little rude and so....well, nevermind. So...sorry, and my name is Hector.”

 

“V-Vivi.” Vivi stumbled over her words, flustered as she was.

 

“Vivivi? That’s an...interesting name.”

 

Vivi nearly facepalmed before realizing she was in company. “No, just Vivi. I was just--nevermind.”

 

Hector grinned. “Am I making you nervous? It’s okay. I’m a little nervous too, if I’m being honest.”

  
Vivi furrowed her eyebrows. “Why?” She was genuinely confused. She was the one who was a wreck. She’d practically been salivating over this boy for the better part of three weeks, and now he was talking to her and she looked like a dope!

 

“Because I actually wanted to ask you a question.”

 

Vivi’s heart thundered in her chest. Was this really happening?

 

“Do you want to go eat somewhere? I hear the tea shop is nice.”

 

Vivi shook her head vigorously. She swore her cheeks were as pink as the hair on her head.

 

“Yes! B-but not right now. My boss is watching. I still have a lot of work to do.”

 

She didn’t really, but it would have been too overwhelming to head out now. She needed to...she needed to calm down. So she showed Hector the door.

 

“I’ll be back in a couple of hours. You’ll still be here, right?”

Vivi nodded. She wasn’t going anywhere for as long as Hector was waiting for her. “Yes, I’ll be here.”

 

Hector flashed her another winning grin and then he was out the door. “Wait for me!”

 

Vivi waited a few more heartbeats, until the door was well and truly closed, and then she collapsed against the shelf, her knees weak, her legs unsteady. Did that really just happen? To me?

 

After all the tragedy she had experienced, after going goddamn catatonic for a whole year, after nearly being expelled from Hogwarts months before her graduation, good things were happening to her. First Loona, and now this. Someone she liked liked her back.

 

She wasn’t alone in the world. She wasn’t alone.

 

There was a boy waiting for her out there.

 

Vivi pulled herself together and made her way over to the counter. She had to get ready. She pulled her pink muggle-style backpack from a shelf beneath the wooden paneling. She sat on the stool and took a moment to collect her bearings.

 

Maybe looking at the picture will help calm me down.

 

At big turning points in her life, she’d take the opportunity to take a look at the photo. She’d done it before going after Jinsoul, before standing up for her in front of a crowd, and at Coco’s funeral.

 

Vivi reached into the bag and gingerly unfolded the creased piece of polaroid. The two of them had taken this with a borrowed camera on their trip to the US. They were beaming at the camera, not a care in the world. Coco was sticking her tongue out.

 

She had used it to remind herself of happier times when it appeared there would be no more. Now the happiness had returned, and she no longer had any use for it. She swallowed.

 

Coco would understand.

 

She folded the picture up once more and stuck it on the shelf. She wouldn’t be coming back for it. Her shoulders suddenly felt lighter, as if a great weight had been lifted off her back. It was time to put her past behind her. It was time to move on.

 


	7. Eclipse

_**DAY TWENTY-FOUR** _

 

“Did you get the food?”

 

Jinsoul lifted the white plastic bags and shook them, a smirk on her face. “Sure do. Sometimes I think you only keep dating me because I keep feeding you. A bird was a totally appropriate Animagus form for you.”

 

Jungeun let a playful smile dance on her lips before she snatched the bag out of Jinsouls hand. “Mmm. Dumplings. I love dumplings!”

 

Jinsoul crossed her arms. “You love all food.”

 

Jungeun shoved a dumpling into her mouth, chewed quickly, and then replied, “Not as much as I love you.”

 

Jinsoul sighed and finally let herself smile. She was cute when she did that. Well, if Jungeun was being honest, she was always cute. Jungeun patted the space on the couch next to her. Jinsoul yawned and plopped herself down.

 

Jungeun’s fingers worked their way across Jinsoul’s back in what she hoped was a soothing massage. Jinsoul let out a soft sigh and put her hands on her knees. “It’s going to be a very long night if you’re this tired at ten in the morning.”

 

Jinsoul threw her hands up. “Two of us have gotten through worse.”

 

Jungeun nodded and bit her lip. “Yeah. The first nights after you told your parents were rough.” She shuddered to think of those nights, when Jinsoul would spend the whole night crying. They were nightmare times, the worst case scenario. Jungeun could still sometimes catch her sobbing, when she thought she wasn’t paying attention. There were fewer of those now, after Loona.

 

But they weren’t in Jungeun’s house now. They hadn’t been for quite some time. After Jungeun’s parents heard the news, they moved the two girls to their summer home in France. It was a nice enough place, but it was clear they’d only done it to get the heat off of them. And there was heat. Enough to burn a building down.

 

No one knew they were here. It was just the two of them, all alone in a strange country. And Jungeun couldn’t get enough of it. She let herself slouch against the back of the velvet couch in the living room of their little hideout. The dumplings were rich and savory, with just the crispiest skin you could imagine. They were perfect.

 

“You like them? I wanted to try a new place after the last one gave us both food poisoning. You know how hard it is to find a chinese restaurant around here?”

 

Jungeun swallowed the remains of her last dumpling and nodded. “Yeah, almost makes me wish we brought Vivi along.”

 

Jinsoul gave her a look. “Yeah, okay, not the greatest idea. She’d totally kill our chemistry. But she’s a really good cook. Really good. Just saying.”

 

Jinsoul shook her head. “Just let me sit on your lap, you doofus.”

 

Jungeun nodded eagerly.

 

Her fingers idly worked their way through Jinsoul’s hair, gathering hair and bundling it into quick braids. “You’d look good with short hair.” Jinsoul looked at her with skeptical eyes. “You would. I mean, you look great already, but with a bob, you’d just be…” Jungeun grunted suggestively. Jinsoul coughed.

 

“You must be just about the only person in the world who thinks I’m still beautiful.”

 

Jungeun laced her fingers behind her head and leaned back, cool as a cucumber. “That’s because everyone else is an idiot, honey.”

 

Jinsoul’s eyes shined with admiration. “I thank my lucky stars every day that I met you. Even if we didn’t start out the greatest...you’re the best. I mean that.” Jinsoul squeezed Jungeun’s hand tightly.

 

“Stop, you’re gonna make me tear up!” Her voice was exaggerated and whiny, but she was only half-joking.

 

They spent the hours between in the same way they always did. They ate, they read books, and they made fun of each other. It was love in the only way they knew how to express it. Two lonely girls who avoided loneliness together.

 

It was nearing eight when they found themselves cuddling in bed. It was intimate, but not raunchy. Doing that kind of stuff before the wolf came was just asking for trouble. But it was almost time.

 

Jungeun shook Jinsoul by the shoulders. “Wake up! We need to get you into the cage, honey.” Jinsoul’s eyes shot open and for the briefest heartbeat Jungeun thought she might have gotten her time wrong, that Jinsoul might already be changing. Thankfully, the yellow she saw in her eyes was a mere trick of the light.

 

“Already? The days are too short, Jungeun.”

 

Jungeun nodded. “They always are. But we have every other day of the month to spend in peace. This is just the price we pay for those moments.”

 

Jinsoul’s eyes were red. She had been crying while Jungeun had been napping. Jungeun felt that now familiar twinge of pain in her heart. She hated doing this. She hated doing this alone. It was so much easier when they had their friends.

 

This was...this was too intense.

 

She felt like a prison guard. She was sure Jinsoul felt like a prisoner. One night a month. That’s what she had to keep telling herself. Jinsoul didn’t resist as Jungeun snapped the cool silver manacles around her wrists and marched her down the stairs to the tiny metal room that was her cell.

 

Jungeun fumbled with the keys in her pockets. Jinsoul stared at her with the same empty, pallid eyes that she always did just before transforming. The guilt formed a pit in Jungeun’s stomach. But this was had to be done. One night a month.

 

The door unlocked with a twist of the key. Jungeun pushed it open with one hand and led Jinsoul into the rough,scratched up interior of the cell. She sat her down on the plush pillow that served as the only furniture in the room.

 

She held her hand. She always held her hand, up until the moment she couldn’t hold it anymore. Jinsoul always admonished her for doing so, saying it was too great a risk, but Jungeun didn’t care. She needed her.

 

Jungeun brushed the sweat slick hair out of Jinsoul’s face. She stared into a pale face and distant eyes. Jinsoul said she couldn’t remember the half-hour directly before and after a transformation, but Jungeun always made an effort to make her comfortable.

 

“I love you.”

 

Jungeun folded Jinsoul’s hands one on top of the other and left her there. She closed the cell door behind her, the lock clicking into place with a snap.

 

She let herself slide down the door, suddenly exhausted even though she had just been napping not fifteen minutes earlier. She buried her face in her hands and sobbed, doing her best to block out the noise of the wolf in the room beyond.

 


	8. Singing In The Rain

_**DAY TWENTY-FIVE** _

 

_Hissing, snarling, gnashing teeth grind against the iron bars of its cell window. Drops of rain patter down relentlessly on its fur, soaking ithe matted strands down into a mangy-looking pattern. The beast howls, as it always does, lonely and hungry for more._

 

Jinsoul’s eyes shot open to see the inside of a cell. Her cell, at least for the summer. She sighed in relief. She was always worried she was going to wake up somewhere indecent, someone’s else’s blood on her lips. Jungeun made sure that never happened.

 

But something was wrong. Whenever it was just the two of them, Jungeun usually came in to unshackle her and tuck her into bed before she woke up. The jangle of chains between her wrists meant that that had clearly not happened. Where was she?

 

“Hey, Jungeun? I’m back….”

 

No answer.

  
Jinsoul pressed her ear up to the cool iron of the door. She could hear the faintest sound of snoring, upstairs. Did she really fall asleep on me?

 

Jinsoul turned around and started pounding the door with her fists. “HEY! JUNGEUN! I’M AWAKE DOWN HERE!!! YOU CAN LET ME OUT NOW!!!” Jinsoul wasn’t sure, but she thought she heard the snoring stop. She pulled back and sat against the back corner of the cell and waited.

 

It must have rained during the night, because her skin was drenched in moisture, and a small puddle had formed in a divot on the floor. She’d need to ask Jungeun about putting some glass up in between the bars and the outside world.

 

Jinsoul peered into the puddle at her own reflection. It was the first mirror she had seen in a while. The ones in Jungeun’s house had all been covered up, and Jinsoul tended to avoid mirrors as a rule after her accident. She didn’t like looking at herself.

 

She was hideous. That was the kindest thing Jinsoul could say about her face. She poked the crater that was her left cheek with her index finger. It went almost all the way in before hitting skin. Jungeun had it wrong. It wasn’t once a month, this transformation. It was all the time, and in every aspect in her life. Even in the relationship between the two of them. It was an invisble barrier that was always up. The wolf was just the most visible sign of it.

 

She hated how Jungeun lied about her beauty just to make her feel better. She shouldn’t have to lie. She shouldn’t have to be with someone like her. _Just breathe. Those are the bad thoughts. Push them out of your head and focus on the good._

 

The good. Jungeun loved her. She knew that wasn’t a lie. Her friends loved her too, although she couldn’t figure out why, for the life of her. She squeezed her eyes shut and did her best to supress the angry, bitter thoughts that lurked in the darkest corners of her mind.

 

The door opened with a loud creak to reveal a red-eyed, tear streaked Jungeun. Jinsoul’s heart dropped. She hated seeing Jungeun like this, and she hated knowing it was her fault. Silently, she climbed to her feet and pulled the younger girl into her arms, pressing her warm body against her rain-soaked one.

 

The two of them stood there for a little while, neither of them daring to break the silence. Finally, Jungeun spoke.

 

“Sorry.”

 

Jinsoul took a couple of steps backward. “Sorry for what?”

 

Jungeun bit her lip. “For falling asleep”, she said, but Jinsoul had an inkling that it was something far deeper than that.

 

“No, that’s fine. You have nothing to apologize for. You were tired, it happens.”

 

“You woke up in a cell.”

  
“I could have woken up somewhere worse. And I think--” Jinsoul stopped. That familiar itching feeling at the back of her nose was acting up. She tried to hold it back, but it came anyway. “AH-CHOO!”

 

She wiped the snot from her upper lip with the back of her hand. “Ugh, god. I think I’m sick. It rained last night--pretty hard, apparently. Can we put some glass up?”

 

Jungeun nodded, and the two of them made their way back upstairs. Jungeun pulled a couple of microwavable meals out of the freezer and stuck them in the microwave, setting the time for a few minutes.

 

JInsoul sat at the table and tapped it with her index finger. “Jungeun. I’m the one who should apologize. I-- AH-CHOO! I, ah, uh-- AH-CHOO!”

 

Jungeun’s face dropped, and with much concern she made her way over to Jinsoul’s side. “Hey, you okay?”

 

Jinsoul waved her off. “It’s nothing. It’s just a cold.”

 

Jungeun ignored her and placed her palm against her forehead. Her hand was ice cold. “Oh. You’re burning up! You need to lay down.”

 

Jinsoul protested. “No, I’m okay! Really. You already take care of me enough, you shouldn’t--”

 

Jungeun shushed Jinsoul. She pulled her out of the chair, one arm around JInsoul’s shoulder, and half-dragged the girl over to their plush couch. Against Jinsoul’s wishes, she sat the girl down on the couch and ran off to the kitchen.

 

Jinsoul rolled her eyes. This was way too much. She was fine!

 

Jungeun came back with a sock full of ice. She pressed it against Jinsoul’s forehead. “Hold onto this while I make some soup. My mother’s recipe.”

 

Jinsoul winced. “Uh, are you sure that’s a good idea? The last time you tried to cook you nearly burnt the kitchen down.”

 

Jungeun smiled reassuringly. “All I need to do is boil some broth and cook some noodles. How hard could it be?”

 

Very hard, as it turned out. There was a racket in the kitchen for about twenty minutes before Jungeun came back, bowl in hand. An off-putting smell streamed off the surface of the liquid. She placed the bowl in front of Jinsoul and took  a couple of steps back, her eyes peering expectantly at Jinsoul.

 

Jinsoul looked down at the contents of the bowl and winced. Jungeun had clearly burnt the noodles, and the broth was a strange orange color that didn’t resemble anything edible. Ah, the things I do for love.

 

Jinsoul spooned some soup into her mouth and gagged. It was even worse than she had thought. “Can I pass? Not that I don’t appreciate the effort, but it’s not for me, honey.”

 

Jungeun nodded. She didn’t seem the slightest bit offended. “I tried.” She sat down on the couch next to Jinsoul and put her hand into her lap. “I missed you.” Jinsoul used her elbow to push herself up and look into Jungeun’s eyes. “Missed me? I was only gone for a few hours.”

 

Jungeun visibly blushed. “I miss you every second you’re not with me. Is that dumb?”

  
Jinsoul brushed a strand of hair out of Jungeun’s face. She shook her head. “I don’t think it’s dumb at all. I love you, too. More than I can show you. Sometimes I wish...I wish I wasn’t sick. I wish you didn’t have to go to all this trouble for me.”

 

Jungeun shook her head furiously. “It’s no trouble if it makes you happy, Jinsoul. It doesn’t bother me to take care of you. It shouldn’t bother you to be taken care of, if you need it. I would do anything for you, sweetheart.”

 

Jinsoul smiled.

 

Now that, she believed.

 


	9. Love Cherry Motion

_**DAY THIRTY-NINE** _

 

Choi Yerim, better known as Choerry by her friends, was having a lot of fun. She’d somehow managed to rope the rest of Loona into a Quidditch game, with modified rules. There were only eleven of them, so they’d had to make do. Haseul had volunteered for the referee position, and the other girls chose their own positions gladly. Choerry volunteered to be team leader for one team, since she was the only member of Loona on an actual Quidditch. Sure, she was only a beater, but experience was experience. Jungeun was the other leader by popular vote. They took turns choosing who would be on their team. Choerry chose Jinsoul first. That made Jungeun mad. She chose Sooyoung. And so they went. Choerry’s team consisted of herself, Jinsoul, Hyunjin, Vivi, and Yeojin. Jungeun, Sooyoung,Jiwoo, Chaewon and Heejin comprised the other team.

 

Choerry decided to show off with a little bit of trash talk. “That’s quite a team you have there, Jungeun. Do you really think you can get to a hundred-fifty before we can?” Jungeun rolled her eyes. “It isn’t that serious, Choerry. You’re the only that’s really invested in this game.” Jiwoo raised her hand. “I’m invested!” She smiled brightly. Choerry smiled back.

 

Jungeun shrugged. “Whatever, let’s just get this game started before we have to go back inside.”

 

Choerry grinned. “You always like to pretend you’re so cool, Jungeun, but it’s not true. I know you.” She tapped the side of her head with one finger. Jungeun ignored her and summoned her broomstick into her hand.

 

“Yeah, okay.”

 

Choerry made her way over to Yeojin’s side. The girl seemed to be struggling with her broomstick. “You need help?” Yeojin shook her head. “My broom doesn’t like me very much. Also, I’ve never played Quidditch before.”

 

Choerry patted Yeojin on the back. “I’ll keep an eye on you. Make sure you don’t get too lost.”

 

Yeojin smiled. “Thanks. I appreciate it.”

 

They lined up their broomsticks and waited for Haseul’s go. The girl unbuckled the balls at her own, leisurely pace. She held the reddish-brown quaffle in her hand. Her eyes gave the assembled girls a once-over. “We're trying to have fun here. Please don't go overboard.” She looked directly at Choerry. Choerry winked. Haseul shook her head and tossed the quaffle up into the air with one hand.

 

The game had begun!

 

Jinsoul, Hyunjin and Vivi rushed towards the ball, as chasers were wont to do. On the other team, Jiwoo, Chaewon and Jungeun reacted similarly. But Choerry was more focused on the other two balls that had been released from the case: The Bludgers. They were dangerous little mischief-makers, just like her. They were meant to add chaos and uncertainty to any game of Quidditch- two things that Choerry was very adept at causing.

 

The bludgers flew up as a pair and then split off, one at each team. The one that came for Choerry’s team rushed straight at Vivi. Vivi continued chasing after the quaffle, unaware of the imminent danger she was in. Choerry had eyes like a hawk--maybe that should have been her animagus form instead of some kind of bat. Speaking of bats, she hefted her own piece of wood in one hand. Quick as ever, she zoomed to Vivi’s side. The older girl’s hands closed around the Quaffle just as the bludger got within range. Choerry knocked it back with a loud crack, sending the bludger careening towards Jiwoo.  Vivi looked over her shoulder in amazement. Choerry tipped an imaginary hat and pulled back and up on her broom, trying to get a better view of the playing field.

 

The bludger she'd saved Vivi from had hit Jiwoo in the back, knocking the girl off of her broom and onto the floor. Choerry didn't feel the slightest bit guilty. Haseul helped Jiwoo up and tossed an elephant-stopping  in Choerry’s direction. Choerry shrugged. What can you do?

 

She didn't notice the other bludger until it was too late. The dark black ball raced past her and towards...Yeojin! The younger girl was playing Keeper for this little game...if she went down, they all went down. Choerry turned on a dime and raced after the devil-ball. She wasn't going to let herself lose this game. Not after the big game she'd just talked earlier.

 

The bludger was inches away now, but it was still faster. Damn this stupid old broom!  She just needed a little bit more...just…

 

The second bludger hit her across the back, knocking her off of her broom. She tumbled through empty air, fingers grasping at nothing until they caught hold of her trusty broom. She wasn't out of the game just yet, but there was no chance she was going to be able to save her. Yeojin was too busy watching Choerry fall to even notice the bludger. The ball smashed into the side of her head with a loud crack.

 

Choerry gasped.

 

Yeojin’s eyes rolled up into the back of her head and she fell onto her broomstick face-first. Blood trickled down the side of her face. The bludger continued to zoom about, but no one was paying any attention anymore.

 

Haseul screamed. Choerry pulled herself back onto her broomstick. She felt like total crap. She'd pushed everyone into this and now Yeojin was hurt. Really, seriously hurt.

 

Choerry raced to Yeojin’s side and pulled her onto her broomstick. It was a short trip down to the bottom, where everyone was waiting for them.

 

Heejin looked apologetic as hell. “Oh god. I hit that bludger. I didn't want… I didn’t mean to…” Haseul squeezed her shoulder. “It's okay, Heejin. Nobody meant for this to happen...we just have to figure out what to do.”

 

Choerry carefully lowered Yeojin onto the grass and tapped her on the face. No response. She tried again. “Yeojin? I'm really gonna need you to wake up now… I can't… “ Choerry shook her head.

 

Yeojin groaned. “What happened?” Choerry gasped and clutched the sides of Yeojin’s head. She kissed Yeojin on the lips. Yeojin coughed and sputtered. “Ew! What the heck was that for?”

 

Choerry grinned. “You're beautiful! Absolutely beautiful!”

 

Haseul pushed Choerry off of Yeojin with a glare. “We're gonna talk about this later. Hey, Yeojin, you just got hit in the head by a bludger. I'm gonna go take you to get that looked at, okay?”

 

Yeojin mumbled. “I’m f-fine...ow...okay, yeah, let's go.”

 

Haseul draped an arm over the girl's shoulders and the two of them walked off the field. Choerry sighed in relief. Jungeun looked livid, but apparently she decided against giving Choerry a reaming.

 

She knew she deserved it. She had been an idiot, bringing live bludgers to a casual game. But she’d wanted to show off her skills. And now Yeojin was hurt. It was only a minor injury, thank the goddess, but it was avoidable.

 

And next time, the consequences might not be so easily brushed off


	10. new

_**DAY FOURTY-NINE** _

 

Ha Sooyoung. Three syllables. One person. Ha, like the sound one makes when they are amused. Soo, as in sue me. And young. Because that’s what she was, after all. At least for the time being. That gave her the right to do whatever stupid shit she wanted to, right?

 

Well, it didn’t matter if the universe gave her permission. She was going to do what she wanted regardless.

 

“Time to go.”

 

She shattered the glass window with a swing of her crowbar. The scattered glass fell to the ground, forgotten. Sooyoung reached through and opened the door with a twist of the door handle. Some people would call breaking into her father’s factory in order to steal some inventory wrong, but those people were boring and not worth listening to. Besides, he wasn’t her real dad, so what did she care? She’d be in another home in a few weeks anyway. None of them compared to Hogwarts.

 

Hogwarts, the only place where she could be herself. Out here, in the muggle world, she was forced to be something darker. Something she didn’t talk about in front of her friends. Not even Jiwoo. Lovely, lovely Jiwoo. But she couldn’t let herself get distracted...she had to move quickly, before muggle law enforcement got on her tail.

 

She ran through the darkened interior of the factory to the only light in the place-- the lamp in her foster dad’s office. The man never turned it off, not even when it was time to close up. What a sucker. She smashed the glass of the office window like she had the main entrance, and she slipped through with little hesitation.

 

There, in the corner of the office was what she had come for. She brushed the dust off the off-white plastic of the case. She ran her thumb over the two red marks at the top of the briefcase. They were supposed to represent an apple. Apple of knowledge? Adam and Eve? Sooyoung had no idea. Whoever had built this case had done it before the dawn of time, in her own estimation.

 

She hefted the case in both hands and made her way out of the room with swiftness. If she got caught her, she’d probably end up spending some time in a juvenile detention center. She’d tried that before. She wasn’t a fan.

 

The bars of metal contained within the jostled as she ran out of the factory and into freedom. The factory alarms blared into her eardrums. She did her best to ignore them.

 

She hailed a cab that took her all the way out to her workshop at the edge of the city. London was a nice place, on occasion, but it was too busy for what she craved.

And what she craved was silence. The perfect, total kind of silence that came only after work. Work, in this case, was melting metal down and welding it into shape. It was difficult, sweaty, and tiring, but satisfying.

 

This project--this work of art she had dedicated herself to--it was everything in her world. She was sure that if a muggle came through the door of her workshop, they would be confused beyond belief. Even her wizard friends would struggle to understand. She hardly understood it herself. But it was something she had to do.

 

She hammered tirelessly at the half-melted hunk of alloy, pounding into shape until she was satisfied with the result. She worked through the night, stopping only to take a sip from the bottle of water she’d brought with her. Finally, she had what she wanted.

 

Sooyoung gave herself a break, pushing her stool away from her workbench to take a look at her project. The freshly-cooled metal was formed into the shape of a human skeleton, arms at its sides. It wasn’t done yet. It wasn’t even close to being done, but it was a start. And there was no way she was going to finish tonight. She decided now was as good a time as any to rest. She had an early start the next morning.

 

_**~** _

Now, underage magic was pretty restricted by the Ministry of Magic. Not as much as it had been--they were more lenient about it, if the student could prove that they were responsible enough to wield it outside the classroom. Sooyoung had more than done that. So it was pretty easy to shrink her workshop down into a size manageable enough to carry around in her bag. She wouldn’t be coming back to this part of town. She had a friend to see.

 

She crossed the unkempt grass lawn that laid in front of the humble little shack Jiwoo and her mom called home. It was bigger on the inside, as Jiwoo would insist. Just like me! God, Jiwoo was adorable. It was a shame neither of them were willing to make a move on the whole thing. It’d probably just ruin their whole dynamic.

 

Sooyoung knocked politely on the door. She was wizard Sooyoung again, and she would be for some time, before the authorities found her and gave her away again. The good thing was she’d only have to deal with this crap for another year, and then she’d be an adult, free to be herself and do whatever she wanted, without other people looking over her shoulder in ‘concern’.

 

Hmm. Jiwoo hadn’t answered the door yet. Neither had her mom. Sooyoung knocked again. Distantly, from somewhere inside, Jiwoo yelled. “Hold on a second! I’m just cleaning up in here!” There was the sound of rustling and of something falling over, and then a faint bout of mild cursing. The door opened a minute later to reveal Jiwoo. Her face looked disheveled and desperate for the briefest of moments before she realized Sooyoung was at the door. Her face brightened instantly. It was almost scary. Sooyoung tried to recall a moment between the two of them where Jiwoo wasn’t smiling, but nothing came to mind. It struck her as odd, but she quickly put it out of mind and stepped inside.

 

She had work to finish.

 


	11. Heart Attack

_**DAY FIFTY-TWO** _

 

“Hey! Are you ready?”

 

Jiwoo poured the contents of her cauldron into a tiny glass vial she had prepared for just this occasion. She shook the shimmering pink contents of the vial and looked upon it with admiration. Her professors had always told her she had an affinity with potions. She was only proving them correct.

 

A love potion. Nobody knew she had this, or that she was even capable of brewing it. Poor, naive Jiwoo. So adorable, she couldn’t possibly be a threat, or a real witch. But she’d proved them all wrong.

 

Jiwoo bit her lip. This wasn’t the first time she’d done this, but it was still scary. All mind magic was. But she needed this. More than anyone could ever know.

 

She remembered the first time she met Sooyoung, the first time she had felt that way. It was a feeling beyond words, a bond that transcended mortality. Jiwoo was sure Sooyoung didn’t feel the same way about her. It hurt.

 

Well, nowadays, everything hurt. Before she had met Sooyoung, she had been sleepwalking through life, unable to enjoy anything. Sooyoung was the first thing to light up her life, to make her feel like she was actually worth something. She wanted more of that feeling.

 

So she doped herself up on love potions. It made her happy at the cost of her own mental health. But that was just fine, as long as she got to spend more time with Sooyoung, more time feeling this way.

 

She tipped the edge of the vial and sent the sweet-smelling liquid into her throat. The familiar fog settled into her mind as she was consumed with thoughts of her love. Of Sooyoung. Of her long black tresses and her smile that shined brighter than the sun.

 

Sooyoung called again.

 

“Hey? Are you gonna come down here any time this morning?”

 

Jiwoo rubbed the redness out of her eyes.

 

“Yeah, just a second!”

 

She wiped the ingredients off the counter and into the garbage can. She had to get downstairs. She was waiting for her.

 

Jiwoo knew it wasn’t healthy to drink so many of the things, especially not in such close proximity to the target, but she couldn’t help it. She wanted more. She needed more.

Jiwoo let a shiver run through her body, sweet and total. Sooyoung was downstairs. Her mom was out for the week on some trip as part of a story. It was just Sooyoung and her. It felt a little edgy, a little dangerous.

 

She hopped off of her desk chair and over to her closet. What should she wear? All of the stuff she had in her closet was shabby and worn. Her mother didn’t make that much on a reporter’s salary...not enough to dress the way Jiwoo wanted to dress. It was selfish, she knew that, but nice clothes made her feel better. Made her feel human.

 

And Jiwoo was all about how she felt.

 

She thumbed through  to a tacky black and white dress she had worn to a birthday party almost nine months ago. There was a thin number in a peach color...but that wouldn’t do. Maybe she could borrow something from Sooyoung. She always looked elegant. And beautiful. Jiwoo could see her face turning tomato red in her desk mirror.

 

“Okay, that’s it. I’m coming up there to get you!”

 

Jiwoo yelped. She could hear Sooyoung clomping up the stairs. She wasn’t dressed! She couldn’t let her see her this way! There wasn’t time for anything fancy, so she just yanked the peach dress off of the hanger and pulled it on.

 

She was frantically trying to smooth out the creases in the dress when Sooyoung knocked on the door. Shortly afterwards, the older girl stepped through.

 

Jiwoo felt her heart thrill in her chest. Her perfect face was framed by dark black locks. She wasn’t smiling, quite the opposite, but it didn’t matter. Her presence was a tonic beyond compare.

 

“Hiya Sooyoung! I was just...getting ready for breakfast? Heh heh.”

 

She gave Sooyoung another one of her winning smiles. Sooyoung’s frown didn’t vanish. Jiwoo shrugged.

 

Sooyoung spoke. “I’m worried about you, Jiwoo. You’ve been acting really strangely lately. It’s like...why are your eyes red?”

 

Jiwoo’s smile widened. A defense mechanism. An instinct.

 

“I was just up late. Thinking about you. It happens sometimes.” Jiwoo’s smile faltered, ever so slightly. She hoped Sooyoung would buy it.

 

No cigar, as it turned out.

“I don’t think so...wait a second, what’s that?” Sooyoung pointed to Jiwoo’s open garbage bin and the big black cauldron that was sticking halfway out of the top. Shit.

 

“Have you been making potions? And trying to hide it from me? What...Why?’

 

Jiwoo shrugged and looked at her feet. She didn’t have any good excuses. None that wouldn’t give away her secret. She tried to hide the empty vial behind her back. Unfortunately, Sooyoung noticed.

 

“What are you trying to hide, Jiwoo? Let me see that.”

 

She got right up in Jiwoo’s face and grabbed her hand. The two of them struggled, but Sooyoung was ultimately able to pull the glass right out of her hand. Jiwoo grimaced, the smile wiped off her face. She’d never wanted Sooyoung to see this. It was embarrassing.

 

Sooyoung looked shocked. “Is this a love potion? Were you planning to…”

 

Jiwoo shook her head furiously. “No, it wasn’t for you. It was for me. It’s always been for me.”

 

Sooyoung raised a puzzled eyebrow. “Always? You’ve done this before...but why?”

 

Jiwoo sat down on her mattress and clutched her head in her hands. “You wouldn’t understand.”

 

Sooyoung sat down next to her. “I’m your best friend. Try me.”

 

Jiwoo took a deep breath, in and out. Her fingers were trembling again. What would Sooyoung think?

 

“The first time I saw you, I think...I fell in love. That’s what it felt like. You made me happy. You made me feel valued, for the first time in a long time. I was depressed. I had friends, I had family, I had a whole life and none of it mattered. I couldn’t breathe. I couldn’t find motivation to move beyond pure obligation. And then I met you in potions class. You didn’t just take my breath away...you gave it back to me. I wanted to feel that way all the time. So I dosed myself with love potions. It was just a little bit of relief at first...and then I guess it turned into an addiction. I didn’t want to be without you, but I was too afraid to move forward. I thought you might reject me.”

 

Jiwoo took another deep breath, made ragged by the tears streaming down her face. She hadn’t expected to cry, but it felt good. Good and terrible. It was out there now. All that was left was...Sooyoung.

 

She expected her to be angry, or embarassed, but she looked horrified. Her eyes were wet with as-yet unshed tears. “You did this to yourself...for me?” She shook her head, and the tears spilled forth. “Jiwoo, you didn’t have to...Jiwoo, I love you. You know that, right? No matter what. You’re the most important person in the world to me. You can trust me with anything.” She squeezed her hand. “Anything. I don’t want you to hurt yourself just to feel good. There’s other things we can do. If you want me to spend more time with you, I’ll do it. Just…no more of this. I’ll get you the antidote and then we can work on...” That was when words failed her.

 

Jiwoo fell into Sooyoung’s arms. They stayed that way for a long time, taking comfort in each others warmth. The truth was, they were more than friends. They always had been. If Jiwoo was feeling cheesy, she might have called them soulmates. And Sooyoung would have agreed.


	12. One and Only

_**DAY FIFTY-EIGHT** _

 

“And you’re sure there’s nothing else you can do?”

 

The doctor shook his head. Chaewon felt her heart sink deep, into the darkest part of her soul.

 

The doctor folded his fingers together underneath his chin and looked at Chaewon over the rim of his glasses with compassionate blue eyes. Chaewon wished she could call them comforting.

 

“It appears the curse is genetic. Passed on matrilineally. Someone very nasty put this curse on your mother’s mother. Whoever did it is likely dead by now.” Still not comforting. “Chaewon, you shouldn’t give up on life because of this. You’ve still got years left to live.” Chaewon continued her silence. He didn’t know that. He couldn’t know that.

 

“I’m sorry, Chaewon. I know it’s not what you wanted to hear. But curses are difficult things to cure...especially secondhand ones from generations past. And this is tough to say, but you need to hear it. You need to accept it if you want to live in the time you have left. You will die before you reach the age of thirty.”

 

Chaewon sharply sucked in air between her teeth. She couldn’t maintain eye contact with the doctor. She couldn’t do this. She was only fourteen. She pulled her purse over her shoulder and stomped out of the office, slamming the door shut behind her before Doctor Wainscott could protest.

 

Her dad was waiting for her outside. It was a rare moment when the two of them were in the same room together, but he’d come through for this. He’d been attending her diligently ever since her mom, his wife, died. She had to give him credit for that.

 

“So, how did it go?”

 

Chaewon shook her head. Her dad’s face fell. She turned away before she could soak in his pain. She had enough on her plate with her own suffering without adding on her dad’s.

 

She put her hand in his and the two of them apparated in front of their little cottage in the hills. Chaewon had spent many empty nights in this very house, with no one to keep her company but her cat, Emmett. She didn’t bother speaking to her dad as she made her way into the house and then into her mint green bedroom.

 

She slammed her head into her pillow and cried.

 

She was awoken a few hours later by the roaring of the fireplace. She opened her eyes to see the flames rise higher and higher until they were suddenly extinguished by a figure stepping through.

 

Sooyoung stood up to her full height and then she sneezed. “AH-CHOO!” Chaewon leaped back on her bed, startled by the sudden intrusion and loud sneezing. “Sorry, Floo powder always angers my sinuses.”

 

Chaewon looked around incredulously. “What are you doing here?”

 

Sooyoung pressed her eyebrows together and looked at the edge of Chaewon’s mattress. “Your dad called me. He said you needed someone. That you were going through something rough.” Chaewon stared at Sooyoung’s shoulders, refusing to make eye contact. “It wasn’t his right to contact you, to tell you about--” Sooyoung held up a hand, instantly quieting her protests. “He didn’t tell me anything. Now--” She crouched down and looked Chaewon directly in the eye, one hand in each of hers. “Are you going to tell me what’s going on?”

  
Chaewon averted her eyes once more. “I’m sorry. It’s s-stupid. I’ve wasted your time.” Sooyoung put her hands on either side of Chaewon’s face and gently directed her gaze back to her. Sooyoung’s eyes were warm and compassionate. She was good at that. Almost as good as Haseul. “I’m sure it’s not stupid, Chaewon. Now, you know you can tell me anything. Anything.”

 

Chaewon nodded. She gulped and started to talk.

 

“So, I saw the doctor today. My mom died...she died because of a curse. Isn’t that funny? She didn’t even know she had one. Her own mom…my grandmom had died so early...she didn’t get a chance to pass on that knowledge. Well, I guess I know now. I’m destined to die before I reach the age of thirty. What kind of...I just don’t…” She didn’t break down, but she bordered on it.

 

Sooyoung stroked her back and hummed soothingly. She was good with her voice. Chaewon wished she could be as good. Well, she wished for a lot of things.

 

“Thank you for coming. I needed this. You helped me clear my head. But I think I need to be alone right now.” Sooyoung nodded and exited the room the same way she had come in, through the fireplace.

 

Chaewon was alone, again. It was a common enough experience. But for whatever reason, she didn’t feel as alone as she had before. It wasn’t just Sooyoung’s visit...the ocean of turmoil within her had settled. It was at rest.

 

Chaewon pulled herself to her feet and parted the curtains at her window.  The sky’s inky blackness was broken only by the pinpricks of light known as stars and the perfect crescent shape of the moon. Beautiful.

What was it Yeojin had written? Our scars are our beauty? Well, Chaewon certainly had her fair share of scars. But she was alive.

 

That was it. That’s what Sooyoung had reminded her of. She was alive. She had friends. The world hadn’t ended. It would end for her one day, but that day wasn’t today. Or tomorrow, probably.

 

She had time to spend, and she should spend it smiling.

 

You’re a good person, Chaewon. You should be proud of yourself. Your mom would be proud of you.

 

Chaewon wiped the tears from underneath her eyes. _No tears now. Face front. You don’t have time to wallow in self-pity._

 

 _Get up._  
  
Do something nice.

_You never know when it might end._

 


End file.
